Chapter 17: New Era!

Abandoned warehouse.

A police cordon had been set up, with quite a few officers standing around.

A Mercedes-Benz was parked outside the cordon, from which Kona Belask stepped out with a grave expression. He immediately spotted Anna lying on the ground and a male corpse not far from her.

"Samboerne." He lifted the cordon tape, noticed a plainclothes officer standing by Anna's body, and patted him on the shoulder.

Anyone who could show up in plainclothes at a crime scene had to have a certain level of clout.

"You're here."

Samboerne looked solemn, pointing to the bodies on the ground, "These are your people, right?"

Kona Belask looked at the dire state of the bodies, pursed his lips, and nodded.

"The abdomen took four shots, the head three. We've also identified the other corpse, Torsten Shipley, Anna's brother, died from a skull fracture caused by a blunt force strike to the head, and he was tortured before his death. He still had ropes tied around him."

"Did she offend anyone recently?"

This was clearly targeted at her.

Kona Belask thought for a moment. What kind of enemies could a bitch in prison have?

While he was pondering, a roaring sound caught his attention. He turned his head and saw a dozen motorcycles zooming in, brazenly "surrounding" the police by the warehouse.

This behavior frightened the officers to the point that none dared to move.

Shooting police officers in broad daylight happened all too often, depending entirely on the drug trafficker's mood.

"From Juarez, a few of theirs died at the warehouse door." Samboerne whispered to Kona Belask by his side, obviously recognizing the leader, putting his hands on his hips and calling out, "Walker, what are you doing here?"

To stand like that against a drug lord in Mexico, one has to be involved in drug trafficking themselves or have a powerful background behind them. But think about it, even Camarena, backed by the DEA, was tortured to death, so it's clear how complex Samboerne really is.

The leading criminal looked anything but friendly, with bushy eyebrows, tightly closed thin lips, and a cruel gaze that was chilling to the bone. Even the police around him didn't dare look at him.

"Is there anywhere in Mexico we dare not go?" Walker barked, tearing through the cordon and walking into the scene with his entourage, he glanced down at Anna and flicked his teeth with his tongue, then ordered the henchmen behind him, "Go inside and check."

"We've taken over here," Samboerne said, frowning.

Walker turned to look at him, "Are you serious?"

Immediately grabbing his throat, he pulled out a pistol and pressed it to his forehead, "Do you think I wouldn't dare shoot? Your cheap stepfather has already been killed. Do you still think it's 1978?"

Samboerne's mother was a top prostitute in the red-light district, who met a man and later became his third wife when Samboerne was only five years old.

That man was Pedro Aviles.

Although he's dead, his influence still lingers. Within Mexico's 1.96 million square kilometers, leaders or high-level members of hundreds of drug trafficking organizations had once worked under him. This bit of residual goodwill was enough to let Samboerne live "safely."

The premise is, you have to keep to yourself.

Don't think the drug lords really fear you. What residual power could a dead old man still hold? It's just the remnants of "mob loyalty."

It's somewhat ironic that the drug traffickers, who disrupt social order, are sometimes the ones who uphold "rules" the most. When Colombia's Escobar was cornered and taken down by the Cali Cartel, DEA, and government forces, the Cali Cartel didn't trouble his wife and children.

Instead, they allowed them to sign a declaration forbidding further involvement in drug trafficking, then arranged for them to leave the country and didn't touch his assets.

It was to give Escobar dignity, and also a message to other organization heads, that it's fine for us to fight and kill each other, even to kill each other's family during the conflict, but if "I" die, don't trouble my remaining family.

However, low-level drug traffickers wiping out each other's families happens quite frequently.

This "unwritten rule" was well maintained until before the Millennium, until the rise of "Los Zetas" and the "Jalisco New Generation," and then everything changed.

The youngsters have no respect for the warrior code!

Seeing that Walker meant business, Kona Belask hurried to intervene, "Calm down, let's handle this matter first."

Walker glanced at him, then back at Samboerne, pushed him away, and pointed at him, "Don't interfere with us. Give him some money, let these cops go have their afternoon tea."

One of the henchmen took out a stack of US dollars and tossed it on the ground. It was embarrassing for a senior police officer to be treated so publicly, and even though Samboerne usually loved money, he felt humiliated!

Without even glancing at the US dollars on the ground, he left with a dark expression, not even saying goodbye to Kona Belask.

Watching his retreating figure, Kona shook his head slightly. What kind of dignity can you expect as a police officer in Mexico?

If he didn't have the guts to fight with Walker there and then, Kona Belask would have respected him as a brave man if he had drawn his gun and fought for his life.

He planned to keep his distance from Samboerne. With that attitude, it was only a matter of time before he met a violent end. Too foolish!

But fools are the one thing this world is never short on.

In December 2017, Juan Rosales, a Mexican social media influencer with a million followers known for his pranks, was shot dead in a bar. The reason? He insulted a drug trafficking organization's leader on social media.

Insulting a drug lord in Mexico, isn't that just like opening a soap factory in the United States?

Kona Belask looked down at Anna, shook his head, and drove away as well.

Walker led his men into the warehouse and what he saw was densely packed bullet holes, on average more than a dozen on each person.

"Boss, found the casings," a subordinate handed him a shell. Walker took a look—it was a standard 9×19mm bullet, too common to be definitive, as many firearms could use it.

"First, take the bodies back for a check. Then we'll know what weapons were used. Look around for any strangers who've been here recently. I refuse to believe that turning Mexico City upside down won't flush them out!"

Walker slammed the bullet casing onto the ground with force.

…

Outside Plateau Prison.

Dragan looked at his watch and tapped his foot impatiently on the car roof. He needed a fix, let out a yawn, and nudged his underling with an elbow, "Cisse, got any powder?"

"Boss, you're not planning on using it here, are you?"

"What's there to be afraid of? It's just a prison. Stop the chatter and hand it over."

The underling was reluctant—this stuff was expensive, even at an internal price. As he hesitated, he glanced at the entrance and noticed a portly figure dragging a suitcase out, "Boss, your cousin is out."

Dragan looked up and saw the familiar chubby face and called out to him.

Casare, spotting Dragan, adjusted the black backpack on his shoulders and walked over with his rolling suitcase, "Waited long?"

Dragan sniffled, "Not at all, not at all. Get in."

The underling next to him opened the car door obligingly, flashing a smile at Casare—he knew well enough the importance of the man they were dealing with.

Unused to being served by others, Casare felt awkward as he got into the car. Dragan immediately asked, "Where's the stuff?"

"What's the hurry?"

Despite his words, Casare still opened his suitcase, revealing neatly packed parts of AK47s, "Here are parts for 5 AK47s, 500 rounds of 7.62mm bullets, 10 F-1 Defensive Grenades..."

"Didn't you say on the phone—10 rifles and 10,000 rounds?" Dragan asked, anxious.

"Do I look like someone who can carry that much? An AK weighs 4.3 kg, and that doesn't even include the ammo. Do you think I'm Superman or Batman?" Casare retorted, annoyed, as he pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, "The address is here. Go and get the rest from a guy named Holder; he'll give them to you."

"Good, good," Dragan said, moving towards the suitcase. But Casare blocked him with a hand, "Money first. $1,000 for each AK, $1 for 5 bullets, $40 for a grenade."

"So that's..."

Casare frowned, struggling with the math, and under the baffled looks of Dragan and others, he pulled out a calculator, "$12,400 in total. We take cash only, no checks."

"Why the price hike? Weren't AK47s $800 each?"

"The Soviets got defeated in Afghanistan, and the price went up when we sourced directly from the factories. We have to make some profit, too. Don't worry, I wouldn't cheat you."

Dragan looked at him doubtfully.

"I'll hand over the money once I've got the goods," Dragan suggested.

But Casare was just shaking his head, "No, that's not how it works."

Dragan, with furrowed brows, proposed paying separately for this deal and the rest, but was refused again since the other location had no financial staff, and it left him livid.

"You think I would run? You know where my home is. We in the arms business value trust; it isn't a one-time deal. You've tested the goods; you know their quality. If you pay, you take them. No payment, I'll sell to someone else."

"In Mexico, arms are more in demand than virtue."

With a stern look from Dragan, Casare remained unfazed. Exasperated, Dragan motioned to his underling, "Pay up!"

"Don't cheat me; I know where you live."

The threat was heavy with implication—family betraying each other was all too common. Take Guzman for instance; he had four cousins who formed the notorious Beltrán-Leyva Cartel and then became sworn enemies.

Those four had joined Guzman in the cannabis business at the age of fifteen, sticking with him into middle age, yet disagreements about interests led to conflict.

It didn't matter who you were.

Over $10,000 and Dragan was fully capable of eradicating Casare's entire family.

With money in hand, Casare was unfazed by the threat, counted it in front of Dragan, and said with a smile, "If you have customers needing weapons, remember to contact me. I can give you a referral fee. Oh, and we're called 'New Hope'."

Best had set up the company as per the boss's orders.

Main business: Trading in pork, beef, and lamb.

…